A Touch of the Bizarre
by The Ladylike Oddball
Summary: In the ten long years between the incident in Paris to Christine Daae's arrival in New York came the introduction of Mister Y's Phantasma, the greatest attraction on Coney Island and a safe-haven for those known as freaks. This is the place where the duo Jack and Dovra arrive at in search of a safe and happy life.
1. Prologue

(AN: Hello! This is the first fanfic I've made on this site, about a year too late, so here is an insanely long prologue for this story. Now this fic, which is set in the Love Never Dies universe and features a good number of the characters, doesn't revolve around those main characters. So if you have no qualms with that then you might enjoy this!)

It was cold in the cage young Dobrosława (Dovra for short) was kept in after those demeaning performances, where she was so afraid of those around her that she was left speechless, the White Widow is what they called her. She did not know what that meant, she was only 8, and this place was so different to her home in Poland. Gone were the grassy hills and farms and the old cottage her family had lived in for so long. This place was grey, this place was dreary and in this place, she was alone.

There was a young man in the cage close to her's, 'The Human Lobster', that's what they called him. They didn't speak to each other, Dobrosława didn't speak to anyone, but he would occasionally give her a sympathetic look. Mostly he would just keep to himself, like she did. But from time to time she would give him things, little flowers or weeds that she was able to find and push to him through the bars of his cage a as a show of friendship. He would simply give her a look of acknowledgment, maybe even a little smile.

As she sat in the darkest corner of her cage, the ringmaster staggered over to her. Dropping a now empty bottle of rum on the floor. Dovra moved back quickly when he grasped his whip and lashed it across the bars of the cage. This made the young man look to the commotion.

"What's wrong with you, huh?! Don't talk on stage, you don't do nothin'! You mute, albino freak!" The man slurred, opening the cage and pulling the child by her long white hair out of the cage and throwing her to the ground. "You're gonna talk, I'm gonna beat the words out of you!"

His words, and the raising of the whip, was met by a blood curdling scream from Dovra. This made the Human Lobster to jump out of his broken cage and rush to her aid, standing between the girl and the drunk ringmaster, which only made the man angrier. "The hell do you want, lobster boy?"

The young man stood his ground firmly in front of the crying and shaking girl. "Lay off her, she's just a kid." "Kid? She's a freak, you're all freaks! Every one of ya'!" The young man was silent for a moment, glaring at the angry brute before him. "If we're freaks... What does that make you?" He snapped back. The ringmaster's eyes widened with pure rage before he sucker punched the boy square in her jaw, sending him tumbling to the ground. Dovra scrambled back and covered her mouth to stop her from screaming again. "Go... Go back in there, kid!" The young man urged as he tried to gain his footing. "And don't look, okay?"

Dobrosława scrambled back into her cage and scurried to the far corner, ducking her head down and getting into a fetal position. The ringmaster towered over the man on the floor. "So you wanna play hero, do ya'? Well how about I show you what happens to freaks that don't mind their own business."

The little girl kept her eyes covered, but she could still hear the beatings the 'hero' was given, the whip being thrashed against his back over, and over, and over again. She could almost feel it as if it was done upon her. After 40 or so lashes and a handful of beatings to keep him down, he was thrown back into his cage. He crawled his way back to a part of the cage that was shrouded in shadows and wiped the blood from his face, grimacing about the stinging on his back.

When Dovra was sure that the cruel man was gone, she scrambled to the so called lobster boy's cage. She didn't know what to do, this was all her fault, after all. Finding a three-fingered hand dangling outside the cage, she moved towards it and held it tight with both of her milky white ones. This brought a feeling of shock down his spine, quickly looking down, he realised that it was just the kid. "You shouldn't be here." He told her softly. "Go on, get outta' here. I don't want you getting hurt too."

Whether it was out of her fear or anger, she moved herself to the cage door and tried to shake it open, hot tears running down her face. The three-fingered man gave a sigh, she was gonna hurt herself doing that, he thought as he covered the whip marks with a coat, wincing as he did, and opened the door for her. She sprang in and hugged him tight, crying as she held him.

"Proszę, nie umieraj, proszę nie umieraj..." She wept, speaking in her native tongue. "Do not die, please..." She translated for him. After wincing at the impact, his face softened at her words. "Hey, hey... It's alright, I've been in worse shape then this, trust me." He reassured her, placing a hand on the White Widow's back. "You're the one givin' me all those plants, huh? The name's Jack, what's your's, kid?"

"D-Dobrosława... Dovra is shorter... They call me White Widow. Not my name." She was able to stammer out between sobs. Jack slowly stroked her thick, curly white hair in an attempt to comfort her. "Dovra... Okay, cut the waterworks, now. It ain't so bad, you just... Get used to it." Of course it still hurt, but he didn't want to worry the girl.

"Don't want to get used to it! I want to go home, back to Poland with Mama and Tata..." She snapped back, accent thick and tears stinging her eyes. Jack sighed, he never had a family or home, and Dovra's was now far away. He would be lying if he said he wasn't getting fond of the kid, between the little presents she always tended to leave for him and this, her show of concern and affection, something that was completely alien to him for most of his life. He got the impression that she won't be as hardened as he is for a long while, she needs someone. And as much as he didn't want to admit it, so does he.

"Don't worry, kid. I'll make sure he steers clear of you, we'll stick together from now on."


	2. Chapter 1

6 Years Later...

Leaning his head on the wooden wall of the cargo train, Jack tore a malformed hand through his light brown hair. Thinking about what their destination, this new life thafe that they, well, Dovra had been imagining.

Phantasma, some big attraction in New York. People say that it's a place where all those who were once called freaks can live and work safely and happily. Jack thought it had to be complete crap, there was a catch. This... Mister Y, was he really to be trusted? Of course he knew Dovra wasn't thinking of such things. She was humming to herself and making a flower crown from the daisies she was able to pluck during their late night escape.

"When I was small, before I came to America." The girl, who was now fourteen years of age, began. "My Mama taught me how to make these. I'm sure, when we arrive in New York they'll be hundreds of flowers. Not like where we were, it was nothing but dirt mostly. Dirt and weeds..." She rambled. It was her way of expressing her optimism for the future. Jack looked to Dovra and chuckled tiredly, somewhat in concern. Sure, he was 25, he was the adult. But surely she should be a bit weary.

"Are you sure he'll let you? Mister Y, I mean. No one knows anythin' about him. How do you know that he's not like every other ass that runs a freakshow?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Because... I heard stories. People come and go, saying things about Coney Island and Mister Y, that he wears a mask and is kind to his employees... No one ever sees him though." Dovra replied, moving closer to him. "You must believe me, that's why you went with me."

Of course, that wasn't the only reason Jack went with her. He promised he would protect her, and for the past six years, that's what he had done. She was like his sister, he would guard her from the ringmaster's wrath and in return Dovra comforted him when things went sour. That's how her heart stayed soft, even his heart warmed to the girl.

Now, they don't leave each other's side.

Dovra slid over to his side and rested her pale head on his shoulder. "Braciszek... When we get to Phantasma, will you still be there for me?" Jack's face softened and stroked her hair as the freight train came to a halt.

"Of course, kiddo. Always. In fact, I think we're here."

(AN: So yeah, this chapter is significantly shorter than the prologue but it's gonna be pretty consistent lengths from here, maybe longer.)


	3. Chapter 2

Walking through the gates of Phantasma, Dovra held onto Jack's hand the whole way. She didn't want to get lost, not here. Neither knew what lurked behind the lights and music, and neither of them wanted to find out now. They kept walking until they made it to the home and office of the illustrious Mr.Y and stopped at the entrance.

"Are you ready?" Jack asked, looking at the nervous look on Dovra's face. The girl looked up at him.

"What if we're not good enough for him?" She asked, holding his hand tighter. Jack smiled at her, he knew it was too late to second guess, they've made it this far.

"What are you talkin' about, kid? He'll love you, and I'm sure he'll need an extra pair of hands, even if they're missing a few digits." He placed a three fingered hand on her shoulder. "Come on, let's go."

They stepped inside the building and were met with a desk and a young women sat at it, typing diligently on a typewriter. She wore glasses and had strawberry blonde hair tied in a messy up do, she was pretty, even though it looked as if she hadn't slept in a week. She looked up at the pair through her spectacles.

"How can I help you two?"

"We're looking for a new job, we heard this place was hiring." Jack responded, not quite used to this kind of courtesy, he was expecting a 'get out of this building, freaks'.

"A new job?"

"Yes, Miss…"

"Barker. And you'll have to talk to Mr.Y about that job, hopefully he's… available." And not composing with the reek of heartbreak and self-loathing oozing from him. "I'll notify him of your arrival. Miss Fleck! Mr. Squelch! Dr. Gangle!" She called.

Mere moments later, three people appeared before them, dressed in black. Two men and a woman, one tall and lanky, one strongman and one dwarf. "You called?" The woman said, grinning at the two new arrivals.

"Yes, as you can see we have some new arrivals looking for a place here. Can you take them to Mr. Y?" She asked them, looking back down at her typewriter. The three performers looked the two up and down and noted that they were much like them and the others at Phantasma.

"Welcome friends! Welcome to Phantasma!" Mr. Squelch said with much gusto. "Mr.Y will be more than happy to see some new help!" Continued Dr. Gangle as they all shook Jack and Dovra's hands. "You must have traveled far, my dears." Miss Fleck commented, noticing their unkempt hair and raggedy clothes.

"Yes miss, we stowed away on a cargo train!" Dovra responded, giggling. Jack looked at her with bemusement, not believing that she had basically confessed to a crime. But the lead performers simply laughed with her, almost like they did the exact same thing.

"Come, come! He will be pleased to make your acquaintance!" Dr. Gangle said as the lead them away. "Goodbye, Miss Barker!" Dovra chirped as she waved to her, the woman gave a little wave back and continued with her mountains of paperwork.

The duo followed the trio of performers up the stairs, not knowing what to expect, until they finally saw him, the man in the mask himself.

Mister Y.


End file.
